Blog Archives

Hormones are molecules that carry messages from one group of cells to another through the blood, stimulating (“waking up”) some body processes and inhibiting (“shutting down”) others. Reproduction, growth, sleep, libido (sex drive), and hunger are a few of the … Continue reading →

Hypospadias is an atypical development of the male urethra, with the meatus (urinary opening) positioned anywhere along a line running from the tip of the penis, along the underside of the shaft, to the scrotum.

If an interdisciplinary team meets together on a regular basis to provide “one stop shopping” (meaning one-stop care) for families with DSDs, that is called an interdisciplinary clinic. Major medical centers sometimes have interdisciplinary clinics for DSDs. The advantage of … Continue reading →

Intersex is a term sometimes used to refer to the condition of having a sex anatomy that is not considered standard for a male or a female. Like disorders of sex development, it is an umbrella term that covers many … Continue reading →

A karyotype is a picture of the chromosomes in a cell. A karyotype is used to see what kinds of chromosomes a person has. It is created by taking a blood or tissue sample from a person, and then staining … Continue reading →

Klinefelter Syndrome (47,XXY or XXY syndrome) occurs when an individual has at least two X chromosomes and at least one Y chromosome. It typically results in small testes and reduced fertility. Genetic Information from: NIH, National Library of Medicine, Genetics … Continue reading →

Leydig cell hypoplasia is a condition that interferes with normal development of male external genitalia in 46,XY individuals, resulting in female appearance. Genetic Information from: NIH, National Library of Medicine, Genetics Home Reference https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/leydig-cell-hypoplasia Leydig cell agenesis, see Leydig cell hypoplasia

Mayer- Rokitansky-Kuster-Hauser (MRKH) syndrome is a variation in the prenatal development of the female genital tract. Girls and women with MRKH have an absent or short vagina and absent or incompletely developed uterus, but typically functioning ovaries. There may be … Continue reading →

Micropenis refers to a penis that is very small but otherwise developed like a typical penis, without hypospadias.

A person is said to have a “mosaic karyotype” when he or she has one kind of karyotype in some of his or her cells, and a different karyotype in other cells. An example is when a person is said … Continue reading →